
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
2012 Chevrolet Traverse Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Keys, Doors, and Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22 Seats and Restraints
. . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-14
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Additional Storage Features . . . 4-4
Roof Rack System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-40
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-48 Lighting
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-36
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Trademarks and License Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-54
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-11
Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-1
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Third Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Heated and Ventilated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10 Passenger Sensing
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-14
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-18
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-19
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Driver Information Center
(DIC) (With DIC Buttons) . . . 1-20
Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 1-21
Storage Compartments . . . . . . 1-21
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Performance and Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-22
Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-23
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-23
Driving for Better Fuel
Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25

Black plate (11,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-11
Passenger Sensing
System
United States
Canada and Mexico
The passenger sensing system will
turn off the right front passenger
frontal airbag under certain
conditions. The driver airbag,
seat‐mounted side impact airbags,
and roof‐rail airbags are not affected
by the passenger sensing system.
The passenger airbag status
indicator will be visible on the
instrument panel when the vehicle is started. See
Passenger Sensing
System on page 3‑31 for more
information.
Mirror Adjustment
Exterior Mirrors
Base Model
To adjust the mirrors:
1. Press
oorpto select a mirror.
2. Press the control pad to adjust the mirror.
3. Return the switch to the center to deselect the mirror.
Uplevel Model
To adjust the mirrors:
1. Press (A) or (B) to select a mirror.
2. Press the control pad to adjust the mirror.
3. Press (A) or (B) again to deselect the mirror.

Black plate (22,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
1-22 In Brief
Sunroof
The ignition must be in ON/RUN or
ACC/ACCESSORY to operate the
sunroof and power sunshade. See
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)
on page 9‑19.
The switch to operate the front
sunroof is on the headliner above
the rearview mirror.
Vent:Press the front or rear of the
switch to vent or close the sunroof.
Express-open/Express-close:
From the closed position, press
and release the rear or front of
the switch to express-open or
express-close the sunroof.
For more information see Sunroof
on page 2‑22.
Performance and
Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System
The vehicle has a traction control
system that limits wheel spin, and
the StabiliTrak system that assists
with directional control of the vehicle
in difficult driving conditions. Both
systems turn on automatically every
time the vehicle is started.
.To turn off traction control, press
and release
tlocated on the
instrument panel, and the
appropriate DIC message
displays. See Ride Control
System Messages on page 5‑36.
.Press and releasetagain
to turn on the traction control
system. The StabiliTrak system
remains on.
For more information, see
StabiliTrak
®System on page 9‑28.
Tire Pressure Monitor
This vehicle may have a Tire
Pressure Monitor System (TPMS).
The TPMS warning light alerts you
to a significant loss in pressure of
one of the vehicle's tires. If the
warning light comes on, stop as
soon as possible and inflate the
tires to the recommended pressure
shown on the Tire and Loading
Information label. See Vehicle Load
Limits on page 9‑10. The warning
light will remain on until the tire
pressure is corrected.
During cooler conditions, the low tire
pressure warning light may appear
when the vehicle is first started and
then turn off. This may be an early

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
Keys, Doors, and Windows 2-1
Keys, Doors, and
Windows
Keys and Locks
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System Operation . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . 2-5
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Power Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Automatic Door Locks . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Doors
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Anti-theft Alarm System . . . . . . 2-13
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Immobilizer Operation . . . . . . . 2-14
Exterior Mirrors
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Power Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Folding Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Blind Spot Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Park Tilt Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Interior Mirrors
Manual Rearview Mirror . . . . . . 2-19
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Windows
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Power Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Roof
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22

Black plate (20,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
2-20 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Windows
{WARNING
Leaving children, helpless adults,
or pets in a vehicle with the
windows closed is dangerous.
They can be overcome by the
extreme heat and suffer
permanent injuries or even death
from heat stroke. Never leave a
child, a helpless adult, or a pet
alone in a vehicle, especially with
the windows closed in warm or
hot weather.
The vehicle aerodynamics are
designed to improve fuel economy
performance. This may result in a
pulsing sound when either rear
window is down and the front
windows are up. To reduce the
sound, open either a front window
or the sunroof (if equipped).
Power Windows
{WARNING
Leaving children in a vehicle with
the keys is dangerous for many
reasons. Children or others could
be badly injured or even killed.
They could operate the power
windows or other controls or even
make the vehicle move. The
windows will function and they
could be seriously injured or killed
if caught in the path of a closing
window. Do not leave keys in a
vehicle with children.
When there are children in the
rear seat use the window lockout
button to prevent unintentional
operation of the windows.

Black plate (22,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
2-22 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Window Lockout
o(Window Lockout): The window
lockout switch is located with the
power window switches on the
driver door armrest. This feature
prevents the rear windows from
being operated, except from the
driver position. Press the switch to
turn the lockout feature on or off. An
indicator light will come on to show
the lockout feature is on.
Sun Visors
Pull the sun visor down to block
glare. Detach the sun visor from the
center mount to pivot to the side
window, or to extend along the rod,
if available.
Roof
Sunroof
The ignition must be in ON/RUN or
ACC/ACCESSORY to operate the
sunroof and power sunshade. See
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)
on page 9‑19.
The vehicle may have a sunroof
over the front seats and a rear
sunroof over the second row seats.
The rear sunroof does not open.

Black plate (23,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2012
Keys, Doors, and Windows 2-23
The switch to operate the front
sunroof is on the headliner above
the rearview mirror.
Vent:From the closed position,
press and hold the front of the
switch to vent the sunroof. Press
and hold the rear of the switch to
close the sunroof. Express-open/Express-close:
From the closed position, press and
release the rear of the switch to
express-open the sunroof. Press
and release the front of the switch to
express-close the sunroof.
Manual Sunshade
The front sunshade must be
opened and closed manually. To
open the sunshade, press the
button on the sunshade handle to
release it and guide it back. To
close the sunshade, pull the
sunshade forward until it latches.
Do not keep the sunroof open for
long periods of time while the
vehicle is not in use. Dirt and debris
may collect on the sunroof seal or
in the track. This could cause an
issue with sunroof operation, noise,
or plugging the water drainage
system. Periodically open the
sunroof and remove any obstacles
or loose debris. Wipe the sunroof
seal and roof sealing area using a
clean cloth, mild soap, and water.
Do not remove grease from the
sunroof.